Presses?

Checking out the presses at Harbor Freight I noticed the 12 ton is less than half the price of the 20 ton. Will the 12 ton have enough ass and clearence to press the barrels and parts on/off a AK rifle?

I have the 12 ton press from them and it will do anything you want it to do, but if you can afford it, I would go with the 20 ton. It has a sturdier frame and will hold up a lot better. My 12 ton is real sloppy in its movement but it does work. ak'sr4me

I have the 12 ton press from HF and have used it on 3 flats now. It works great! One thing though.......it would be best to put some extra welds on it to beef it up a tad. I'm also going to beef up the floor support with stronger angle iron.

I have the 12 ton press from them and it will do anything you want it to do, but if you can afford it, I would go with the 20 ton. It has a sturdier frame and will hold up a lot better. My 12 ton is real sloppy in its movement but it does work. ak'sr4me

AS I have stated before, I have the 20 ton. Because it has a welded frame it is more stable than the 12 ton. Which is not to say it is perfect. The moving portion of the press does have a little bit of play on the track. I think i will fit a piece of 18 gauge or so sheet stock of either mild steel or brass to act as a sort of shim to prevent the side to side play.

BTW I have seen a 12 ton Harbor Freight press welded up and it worked much better. Just make sure the the thing is square before you do it however.

I have the 12 ton press from HF and have used it on 3 flats now. It works great! One thing though.......it would be best to put some extra welds on it to beef it up a tad. I'm also going to beef up the floor support with stronger angle iron.

AS I have stated before, I have the 20 ton. Because it has a welded frame it is more stable than the 12 ton. Which is not to say it is perfect. The moving portion of the press does have a little bit of play on the track. I think i will fit a piece of 18 gauge or so sheet stock of either mild steel or brass to act as a sort of shim to prevent the side to side play.

BTW I have seen a 12 ton Harbor Freight press welded up and it worked much better. Just make sure the the thing is square before you do it however.

Exactly,

I too have the 20 ton press and have noticed at times it can be a bit unsturdy. Your idea sounds like a good one too.

Sorry to veer off subject here, but how do you guys ensure that the ram is pushing perpendicular to the area that the plates sit on? Sometimes I wonder if I am truly pushing at a 90 to the plates. When I first set it up, I tried to make sure the bar that the ram is on sat parallel by using a level and increasing or decreasing the length of the springs. However, after time I think it gets off again. Any suggestions on how to make sure the ram stays pushing perpendicular to the plates and will stay this way?